Need advice on MVMCP with young kids

[Cibahwewah]

Now, I know this is a year away, but I'm the uber-planner. Please advise:
Which night would you do MVMCP, from a crowd perspective: Sunday, Tuesday, or Thursday?
(We're staying 7nights Nov27-Dec4, 2010)
Also, my kiddos (who will be 7 and 4), currently go to bed about 9pm Eastern time. I'm thinking about staying for the later parade which starts at 10:30pm, hoping they'll be excited enough to stay awake and not have a meltdown. I'm planning on long afternoon naps that day, but if they don't sleep well, I suppose we could go to the earlier parade and call it an early night. I think I'll also bring one umbrella stroller in case someone is too tired to walk at the end of the night. I just hope it's not me!
Did anyone on here with young kids do a similar schedule last week? How were the crowds? Am I asking for catastrophe keeping the kids up so late?

 

[mpbest]

We attended the MNSSHP this year with DS 4. He doesn't usually nap, but I did manage to get him to nap that day for about an hour and a half. We arrived around 5:30 and left at 11:45. We just hung out at the condo that morning, so we weren't worn out to begin with. He was really excited and wanted to see everything. It was about 10:30 to 11 before he started winding down. We also took it easy the next day. I think they will be so excited that they will last longer than you think!

 

[AlternateEgo]

I would suggest the day of the party, to stay at the resort, do some swimming, then take an afternoon nap. Wake up, get ready like its morning and go have dinner, then head to the party.

These are my plans if we do the Halloween party with my girls next year

 

[chrisw127]

Other than avoiding weekends and the last night of the party, it's probably not possible to predict if the party will be crowded or not. One indication can be if Disney starts expanding discounts for cast members or DVC members for certain nights--that's usually an indication that those nights aren't selling well, but those aren't released until fairly close (weeks, rather than months) to the night of the party.

I think the best thing you can do with little kids at MVMCP is to not expect that you'll stay late, that way if you do, it's a bonus. We've done it twice and our oldest (now seven) did best when we didn't do anything that day, as the PP said, just relaxed around our resort. Although your ticket says you the party starts at 7:00, you can usually get in as early as 4:30.

Even if you just stay a little while, you're going to have a great time. It's a really lovely experience.

 

[dkbnyc]

we went to MVMCP this year on thurs dec 4th. crowd levels were very low, weather was just ok, and we rode lots of rides. I woke the kids (nearly 5 and nearly 2) at 4:30am to catch a 7am flight. They did not sleep on the plane. 5yo had her meltdown around lunch time and was a PITA. She got better once we got to MK (5pm) and could go do things. She had another meltdown around dinner time. Clearly she needs to eat to keep the peace
The baby fell asleep in the stroller around 9pm and the 5yo stayed awake until we left at midnight. We stayed and watched the last parade- got a snack on the way out and then waited for the bus.
She fell alseep the minute she sat down on the bus- I am honestly she did as well as she did. We were ALL exhausted by the end of the day. DH and I only had 2 hours of sleep before we flew.
Definitely take a stroller for your little one. The parade was really great- they'll be so excited to see it